What a long morning this was…

From yelling to my mom, to nearly being burned alive to the deepest conversation I ever had with my dad… What could possible happen else?

Oh well, I tell you what happened…

After me and my siblings played near the entrance for a while, mother had arrived back with our breakfast… Well, their breakfast, to be exact. I counted, one, two, three, four, five meat pieces… None for me, of course.

We stayed silence all the moment, we stopped fooling around and just cowered as mother walked around, throwing dead trees into a large fire pit place in the lunch room, then breath a sudden fire that I almost believe it was aiming for me, in actuality, but missed by little.

She was still angry, clearly, but she was more than this, her snout was covered in blood from the animals she brought, not only scary, quite ununsual, she always cleaned herself before even arriving at the rivers, well, I can't say I know what was going within her head…

"Mother…? Your…" One of my brothers said, pointing out to his own snout.

She seemed to knock out of whatever trance she was and moved towards the small fountain within the lair, washing herself. She acted like nothing was out of usual and calmly walked back to the fire and started cooking the meat in the fire, encouraging my siblings to come by, except me, of course, I would keep my distance.

It didn't took long for my father to come and sit by my side, he looked around, in search of something, we would soon find out…

"Where is Kary's breakfast?" He demanded from Karynthia.

Mother refused to respond or talk at all, she was uninterested in arguing again, so was my father. He took his piece of meat and cut off a little piece to me, murmuring something.

"You worry too much, Akavatos. Kary would still eat, whatever was left from us."

"You are out of your mind if you think I will allow OUR son to eat like a scavenger!" Father stomped into the ground. Tensions were raising, once again, me and my siblings looked at each other, hardly surprised but not exactly amused either.

"Kary will eat food with us the day he hunts his own meat, otherwise, you shouldn't expect else from me." Karynthia smirked.

"Well, today Kary WILL bring his food, won't you my son?" Father looked down to me, I faintly smiled and nodded. "More importantly, as a kobold, not a dragon!"

My father and siblings cheered me up, while mom stayed silent. Well, better than nothing… Though, I still have to create a weapon to face an animal, well, if my ancestors once did, my father can help me still.

My head was filled with too many thoughts, but I just wanted to enjoy my breakfast, I was still wondering what would be for lunch, maybe the moss of the walls of the cave are tasty? Well, I was determined to not be eating that.

As the breakfast was over, I begun working into a weapon, a bow as they call, me and my father went outwards to search for the materials, soon we were back and building the thing. It was hard, my father knew what it was, but his gigantic talons were not capable of helping me, so it was all on me.

I managed to, I was too determined and unwillingly to give up, at least not yet. My father also advised for me to make a knife, it would come handy with my still small talons, one can never be too ready. With everything at my talons, I told my father it was the time.

It was about a few hours to midday, we departed from our lair, my father carrying me in his maw and then we landed at a clearing, immediately looking up for my potential prey. The feeling was an excitement I rarely if ever had, hunting like a dragon in my mother's lessons always meant I couldn't face anything, my talons were not enough, never enough… But now, the tables had turned, I was equipped for such hunt.

"Kary, now its the time! I don't care how small is the animal you catch, I am proud of you for trying, I am." Father said behind me, as I turned to him. "Also son, don't go too deep into the forest, I can't keep track of you there, and the dangers lurking are far too much for your bow and knife."

"Got it, father!"

And so the hunting begins, I slowly entered the forest, as silent as my skinny legs went through the grass, almost a ghost, well, I still was in a quite outstanding blue in my scales, but well, this was not to be trouble, right?

Not long after it begun, I located my prey, a small rabbit was going about their way in amidst a few trees, well, what could I say? Not even my siblings catch those fast guys, so it was my chance to also prove I was at their skill level too.

I aimed at it, readied my arrow and took a deep breath, waiting for the right moment… Suddenly I heard a loud growling, it didn't sounded like one of my father's, scaring me and I released the arrow missing the rabbit, who escaped deep into the woods.

I wouldn't lose my chance, I started the chase, going through the fallen branches and trees. My blood was pumping and the thrill of hunting was finally at its peak within me, I moved almost flawlessly through the forest after it. I saw a large clearing right in front of me and one growl before I lost all sight from the rabbit.

I looked around and walk through the greenish lakes in the clearing, inspecting the place, as a shadow passes by me, it was my father and to some extent I had some relief and disappointment, I had nothing for him.

"Kary!" He yelled as he landed into the lakes splashing waves around. "Never run like this through the woods ever gain, do you hear me?! I lost sight of you, was searching for you the moment you disappeared."

My heart had sunken like a small pebble into a large lake, I couldn't disappoint him, I couldn't…

But suddenly I noticed a movement in the water…

"Father, look out!" I shouted.

My father turned and a large crocodile, the biggest I ever saw bite his leg. He roared as loud as I ever heard and the crocodile started spinning into the water, a brutal dance twisting his leg, breaking it, in loud cracks.

I was desperated and had no idea what to do, just as I looked into my bow, I took it and grabbed an arrow and shoot at the crocodile, but it was insignificant as its scales were too tough. My father finally recovered himself and started flying, carrying the crocodile into the sky for a little before it released his leg back into the lake.

"Kary! Run to the clearing we came, now!" He roared.

I swiftly moved back into the forest, same as the first time, quickly arriving the clearing, as my father came down from the skies, thinking the least painful way to land with his broken leg into the ground, before finally landing and letting out a roar in pain.

I looked down in shame, this was it, this should be my end, I failed mom, dad, my siblings, I failed myself, this was a disaster, I had nothing to show and worse than this, my father has a broken leg now. We came out worse than empty handed…

Tears came rolling down as I sat into the ground, listening to my father's growls of pain, before he looked to me.

"Remove those tears son…" He said as he bent down towards me, "You are not guilty in this… It was my fault, I landed where I shouldn't have had…"

"Father…" I gulped, "Are you… Alright?"

"Alive, I sure am, the leg is bad but I will recover. I was more worried for you."

"Father, what mother will think of this? Especially me returning empty handed…"

"I will deal with her if this came to be, don't worry about this. Now lets return home, I need to wash those wounds in clean water."

I nodded but I couldn't really hide, I was scared, even from my father, this was a disaster, he surely wasn't fine with it, but he was swallowing all his pride and anger in order to be my father, I think for a dragon there is no greater sacrifice than this.

I walked into his maw and sat between his teeth as he painfully flew up and started his path returning to home. It was the longest journey I could ever make, just blow up by what could possible happen that is worse than this morning, but you know, at this point, I wasn't worried, I was expecting the worst…

But somehow… What happened next was… Rather surprising.

As soon as we arrived at the lair and he dropped me into the ground, he once again painfully landed and growled, and soon my siblings and mom arrived.

"Akavatos?! What is the meaning of this?! What happened?" She roared from back the lair.

"A crocodile pack attacked me when I landed in a lake searching for Kary…"

She immediately turned on me, I could see the anger building up, her neck almost flaring in fires of rage, I expected it, so I wasn't really afraid, maybe a little bit, but I was ready.

"You… You little vermin… What have you done to your father? After he defended you?! This is how you thank him?! You get lost and is attacked by crocodiles?!"

But in a moment, her burning rage vanished, as if in her flames calmed down…

"See Kary? I was always afraid this would happen, you can't hunt alone, you are going to be eaten by something, you simply are not one of us, I wished to give you a quick death so I wouldn't lose you for something else…"

Everyone was surprised at her calm, even Akavatos. While for me, her point was proven? Was I really so weak I would never be free from my fathers? What is this freedom she always said? Do I really need it? Or she thinks I am too much of a dragon to live as a kobold?

"Karynthia… Hear me out…" Akavatos got up by sheer force of will to stand against her. "Kary shoot a crocodile with his arrows, and I think if wasn't for his distractions, my leg wouldn't be here still. He only needs training, for he soon will stand out as one of us, still in his kobold ways…"

"Give him a chance Karynthia, give your son a chance… Please…"

I saw my mom shake her head for a moment, in disbelief, she was lost, I could see it, maybe it was her draconic instincts, pride, anger or even the fact that she couldn't deal with the idea that she was wrong about me, maybe she thought she was too far gone in this path to ever return, to ever accept me as her son again…

She stomped into the ground in a way, defeated, almost ashamed of herself, then walking towards Akavatos.

"Fine. First, we take care of your leg before the infection gets out of hand-"

"I can do this honey, the kids can help me…"

She nodded.

"Well then, almost lunch time. Today we will have crocodile meat here, they gonna pay for what they did to my husband and…" She sighed, maybe in an expelling of anger, "And my son…"

She faintly smiled at me, nodding in approval and then flying out into the open, in seek of vengeance. I would not like to be those crocodiles, but then again, this morning I nearly was, I could at least sympathize? No, not after they did to my father. Those beasts have no hearts… But do my mom has one?

Maybe he was right… Mom cares about me, in her own weird and scary way. She thinks I am going to be eaten out there alone, after today, her concerns seems about right, if weren't for my father finding me first, those crocodiles would have, my weapons are not enough against them… She thinks she should burn me, as in an act of mercy, to spare me the fate she doesn't want to see me have, while being the very one who brings it to me.

Its a tragic prophecy in the way it self-fulfills by the fear of the possibility it could happen.

She isn't ready to think that I will be fine, and to be honest, after today, neither am I.

Could the kobold village nearby us that my father mentioned be my new goal? I need new weapons, training, experience from my kind. My father only knows as much as his eyes can watch, but not fully understand. I need some time, this day was too eventful and I am exhausted, its not even midday…

I still gonna prove to you mom, hold your fire for a bit, because I gonna make you swallow back down.